Dr. Richard Bazinet is a Canada Research Chair in Brain Lipid Metabolism at the University of Toronto. Dr. Bazinet’s research program is focused on the regulation and role of brain lipid metabolism in neurodegenerative diseases and neuropsychiatric disorders.
Dr. Bazinet and his team are currently taking a kinetic and biochemical approach to study the mechanisms by which dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids regulate the metabolism of arachidonic and docosahexaenoic acids within brain phospholipids.
Bazinet lab studies include disease models and have several ongoing collaborations examining clinical studies. Their work has influenced international guidelines for the consumption of dietary fats for brain health. Dr. Bazinet and his team are currently collaborating with large agribusinesses and are also working with the local food community including farmers, chefs, and food writers.
He received his BSc from the University of Western Ontario and completed his PhD under the supervision of Dr. Stephen Cunnane at the University of Toronto in 2003. Dr. Bazinet then completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Dr. Stanley Rapoport’s Brain Physiology and Metabolism Section at the National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health.